Gill Books 12 Feasts of Christmas: Lets Get It Started

The Gill Books 12 Feasts of Christmas celebrates the festive season with twelve feasts featuring recipes from our wonderful authors. Recipes that will impress the visitors, sustain you, make the children smile, help you survive after overindulgence, celebrate in style and most importantly, taste delicious. Here we share recipes that will help you get things started!

My Gluten Free Kitchen: Soda bread

Whether you have to cut gluten out of your diet or just feel better when you do, rediscover the joy of cooking with over 120 tasty, feel-good recipes that everyone will enjoy in My Gluten Free Kitchen by chef Gearoid Lynch.

makes 1 loaf

450g gluten-free white bread flour blend, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp bread soda
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp caster sugar
430ml buttermilk

This is a very crusty, light bread. Like all good homemade soda bread, it needs to be consumed within 24 hours.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Dust a baking tray with a little flour. Sieve the flour, bread soda and salt into a large bowl, then add the caster sugar and mix together. Make a well in the centre of the flour mix and add the buttermilk.

Using one hand in a claw shape, gently mix everything together, working from the sides of the bowl. The dough should be soft and wet but not too sticky. Once it comes together, pour it out onto a well-floured worktop.

With floured hands, shape the dough into a round without overworking the dough. Place the round loaf on the baking tray, cut a deep cross across the top and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the loaf from the oven, turn it over and put it back on the tray and continue to bake for an additional 10 minutes. The bread is done when it sounds hollow when you tap the bottom. Leave to cool on a wire rack.

The Plan: Carrot and Coriander

In her first book The Plan, Aoife Hearne’s focus is on developing sound eating habits that benefit the whole family through delicious dishes that are accessible rather than intimidating.

This is an easy soup to make at weekends if carrots are part of your Sunday roast. It means you only have to peel carrots once but get double the benefit!

Serves 5 x 400 ml

4 tsp butter
2 onions, chopped
1 potato, peeled and chopped
6 carrots, chopped
1000 ml reduced-sodium vegetable stock
2 tbsp chopped coriander
Calories: 136

Melt the butter in a large pot on a medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft.

Add the potato and carrots, and toss until well coated.

Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Then lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

Add the coriander and serve hot.

A Taste of Home: Roasted Red Pepper, Leek and Soft Farmhouse Cheese Terrine

Catherine’s delicious, wholesome recipes from her new book A Taste of Home celebrates the best ingredients Ireland has to offer. This terrine is a perfect dish to share.

I think the best way to serve this is to put the whole terrine in the centre of the table and let everyone dig in. It looks really impressive and is a definite crowd pleaser. Roasted peppers are delicious in salads or soups. The best way I know to peel them is to roast them at fan 200°C for 25 minutes until blistered and blackened and then place into a sealed plastic bag for about 10 minutes. Peeling them will be so easy.

extra virgin olive oil, for sautéing
1 medium leek, sliced in half lengthways
6 roasted red peppers, peeled and deseeded, each sliced into 4

FOR THE FILLING

400g cream cheese
100g Greek-style natural yoghurt
4 tbsp pitted black olives, chopped
2 tsp chopped oregano
½ lemon, zest only
1 tbsp chopped parsley
salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE SALSA
10 cherry tomatoes, finely diced
6 pitted black olives, sliced
½ lemon, zest only
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6 fresh oregano leaves
salt and freshly ground pepper
crusty bread, to serve

Heat a large frying pan with a little oil and lightly sauté the leeks. Leave to cool. Place a doubled layer of foil 20cm long on a baking tray. Lay the pieces of red pepper in 3 adjoining rows along the length of the foil, just touching each other, and lay the leeks across all 3 rows.

To make the filling, combine the cream cheese, yoghurt, olives, oregano, lemon zest and parsley in a bowl. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Spoon the cream-cheese mix on top of the leeks, piling it up slightly.

Fold the foil in on the two ends. Gather up the two long sides of the foil, fold over and seal. Smooth the sides and leave to set overnight in the fridge.

To make the salsa, mix all the ingredients together well, almost crushing them.

To serve, unwrap the terrine and place on a large board or pretty platter. Spoon the salsa over the top. Using a sharp knife, cut a few 5cm slices of terrine and serve with crusty bread.

A Taste of Home: Chicken Liver Parfait

Catherine Fulvio’s chicken liver parfait recipe from A Taste of Home is really tasty, perfect for winter.

I think there is nothing nicer in the winter months than a well-made chicken liver parfait with crispy bread as a snack while you toast your toes in front of the fire.

Here’s a tip: taking the parfait out of the fridge 20 minutes before serving takes the chill off and enhances the flavours; serve with your favourite seed bread or even celery sticks.

120g butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
350g chicken livers, trimmed
1 tsp chopped thyme
4 tbsp brandy
½ orange, juice and zest
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
salt and freshly
ground black pepper
few small bay leaves, washed
4 tbsp melted butter

To make the parfait, melt the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat and add the onion. Sauté for 6 minutes until softened but not browned.

Add the chicken livers, thyme and brandy and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until the livers are just cooked. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked livers to a food processor. Add the orange juice and zest and Worcestershire sauce. Blend until smooth. Check the seasoning and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Spoon the parfait into small pots or ramekins. Allow to cool completely and place in the fridge to set.

Once set, place a bay leaf on top of each pot or ramekin, spoon over a little melted butter and return the parfaits to the fridge.

Serve each parfait with crusty bread and some chutney or relish.

We hope that you found some inspiration to get things started this Christmas! Happy feasting to you and yours, stay tuned for more fantastically festive recipes. Follow us @GillBooks on Twitter, @gillbooks on Instagram and like us on Facebook for the latest author news.